The DFE Announces Spring 2016 Finance Competitions
25 January 2016 11:41AM
The Duke Financial Economics Center (DFE) is excited to host three finance competitions for undergraduates this semester. In partnership with corporate sponsors, the DFE has scheduled the PEAK6 Business Strategy Competition for March 4, the Morgan Stanley Equity Research Competition for April 5, and the Deutsche Bank Finance Game Show for April 12. The competitions are designed to educate participants on different roles in the finance sector and hone essential skills for those interested in pursuing finance careers.
Sponsored by the entrepreneurial Chicago investment firm PEAK6, the Business Strategy Competition is open to sophomores and juniors of all majors. It requires students in teams of three to put themselves in the shoes of a senior management team. They are asked to imagine that PEAK6 has recently acquired a new company, and their team has been called to be the company’s new management. Teams must evaluate every aspect of the business to improve its operations, value, and earnings, and give a presentation on their strategies and accomplishments assuming that three years have passed since acquisition.
A panel of PEAK6 professionals will come to campus on March 4 to judge the top 10 teams’ presentations. The first, second, and third place teams will receive substantial prizes.
The Morgan Stanley Equity Research Competition in April will give sophomores in teams of two practice preparing a stock pitch, an equity analyst’s research report to convince investors that a particular stock is a sound investment. Since finance firms often require students interviewing for summer internships to do a stock pitch, this is especially helpful for interview preparation. Teams will need to address valuation, upcoming events that will affect the stock, and risks. Morgan Stanley representatives will listen to the pitches and award members of the winning team first-round interviews for summer 2017 internships.
The Deutsche Bank Finance Game Show will especially appeal to students who love trivia and current events. The DFE and Deutsche Bank have put on the Game Show for six consecutive years. This spring it is open to all sophomores. The first 12 teams of four students who correctly answer a short online quiz will be invited to participate in the Game Show on April 12. Those teams will then face off over quiz questions pulled from a range of finance- and business-related categories over the course of three rounds. The best preparation for competitors will be reading major newspapers and staying abreast of events affecting the global markets in the weeks leading up to the Game Show.
All three competitions will be followed by receptions during which participants can informally mingle with firm representatives.
The DFE hosts competitions every year to prepare students for finance internship recruiting. In the past, most competitions were held in the fall, anticipating the spring recruiting season for juniors. Responding to recent changes in the recruiting calendar — firms are now interviewing juniors in the fall — going forward, the DFE will offer several competitions in the spring for sophomores.
To receive more information about the spring 2016 competitions and notification when registration is open, join the DFE Email List.